Happy 2009!

First things first, Happy New Year girlies! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season, and are having a great start to 2009. We had a wonderful New Years Eve, as my Maid of Honor Roey and her fiance came to stay with us. We had a great time catching up, and she had a wonderful belated Christmas present for me – she asked me to be her Matron of Honor! She’s getting married in October of this year, so I’ll officially be Matron status by then. My impending matron-ness is a good segue into the most important thing of this new year…

I’M GETTING MARRIED!!!!Ok, this is obvi old news around here, but it is *so* exciting to finally say “I’m getting married this year”! When all is said and done, we will have had a 16 month engagement. As you can imagine, 2009 seemed pretty far off at the time. Now here we are, rushing to make bachelorette party plans (*beyond* excited for that) and tie up loose ends from a wedding perspective (shamefully, too many to count at this point).

While the focus in the new year will be on the wedding and the job hunt, I’ve decided to go ahead and create a few New Years resolutions. Here they are, for all of you to see (and keep me in line with!):

1) Start a Gratitude JournalI first heard of a gratitude journal from our wedding guru Liene at Blue Orchid. The basic premise is to write down 5 things each day that you are thankful for, no matter how small they may be (you can read more about it here and here). These past few months have obviously been a bit rocky for me, but have really taught me to be thankful for the little things in life- a roof over my head, a bunch of great friends (and bloggers!) in my life, and a man I can call the love of my life. I think it is *so* hard to focus on all the negatives right now with what’s happening in our economy and the world abroad; taking just a few minutes each day to write what you’re grateful for should be a must for everybody.

2)Read One Book Per MonthAgain, this idea comes from Liene, who I think is the most savvy person I know. She also runs a blog called The Smart Planner, which caters to professional wedding consultants. I obviously don’t fall into that category, but I think the information she imparts on that site should be read by everyone. She recently did some blogging and Twittering on reading business books, and it really made me think about how much I love to read (and how little I do it). I’ve decided to conquer one book a month, no matter the genre. Any reading done at all is probably good reading, right?

3) Manage My PapersLadies, I am drowning in paperwork. I’m going to fully admit here that I can be the type to let the mail pile up, however neatly it may be piled, until it takes over my desk (and our TV stand, and our couch… You get the idea). I’ve decided to implement a 1-touch rule on any papers that come into the house. I’m only allowed to touch it once before it goes in its designated spot- filing cabinet, bills paid and put in the mailbox, or recycle. No more paper disorganization.

4) Stay In TouchI’ve been behind on correspondence these days, be it e-mails, letters, or just quick Facebook messages. I hate being “That Girl” that’s always delayed on the response, so I’m stopping it post haste. There shall be no room for bad manners in this household any longer.

5) Become an eBay GuruI’d love to *finally* get that eBay store off the ground, in order to unload unneeded items for a little extra cash.

6) BE HAPPY!Not much more explanation needed. I’m in love, I’m getting married, I’m healthy, I have awesome family and friends, and I live in a great city. Time to live it up!